1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a snow plow and, more particularly, to a snow plow removably attachable to a vehicle hitch.
2. Description of the Background Art
Snowfall affects daily living for millions of people each year. The accumulation of snow hinders pedestrian and vehicular traffic, slows travel and commerce, and can present potentially dangerous hazards. Thus, snow removal is required to clear driveways, sidewalks, parking lots and streets for safe use. Municipalities generally clear major throughways with large vehicles with snowplows. Many other smaller scale methods of snow removal are available, yet many methods are inconvenient or expensive for the average individual.
Common methods of snow removal available to a home or small business owner include a snow shovel, an electric or gas powered snow blower, and hiring a snow removal professional, but each poses their own drawbacks. Manual snow removal with a snow shovel is usually time consuming and can cause physical injuries such as back and muscle strains, headaches, heart attacks and slip and fall accidents. Snow blowers are expensive, require maintenance and repairs, are heavy and difficult to transport, and require the operator to be outside in the elements. Snow removal professionals can be expensive, sometimes requiring the customer to pay yearly fees even if there is no snowfall. Additionally, snow removal professionals may be unreliable or unavailable to clear property immediately, thus leaving customers without cleared property for hours or even days. They may even be careless when removing snow and damage a customer's property, causing further expense.
Another method of snow removal available to an individual is installing a snow plow on the individual's vehicle. However, the vehicle will usually require a large amount of horsepower, a powerful engine, and front wheel drive. Snow plows today are usually heavy and need to be professionally installed due to complicated machinery and wiring. Furthermore, snow plows cannot be easily detached and reattached, making this method of snow removal inefficient for individuals unless they are involved in a snow plowing business. Attempts have been made in the art to solve these problems. For example, Biance (U.S. Pat. No. 4,595,007) discloses a trailer-type snow plow designed to be pulled behind a vehicle. A plow blade is connected to a central member attached to the rear of a vehicle. The plow blade is connected so that it may pivot freely in a horizontal plane. A winch is mounted to the central portion to raise/lower the plow blade and blade extensions are connected to the plow blade to widen the area covered by the plow blade.
In another disclosure, Daniels (U.S. Pat. No. 5,046,271) provides a snow plow mounted to the rear of a vehicle. A Reese hitch must be mounted and welded to the vehicle chassis. The snow plow includes a lifting mechanism with a hydraulic system for raising and lowering the snow plow controlled by an electric control mounted in the dashboard of the vehicle.
Fulton (U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,328) discloses a snowplow mounted on the rear of a vehicle via a conventional trailer hitch. A support member connects to the trailer hitch and a blade support supporting a plow blade. A manual force applied to a fulcrum attached to the blade support assembly allows a user to raise the plow blade.
In yet another disclosure, Schmeichel (U.S. Pat. No. 7,131,221) provides a snow plow for use with trucks and sport utility vehicles. A mounting apparatus includes two uprights connected by an interconnecting member. A hitch tongue is secured to the interconnecting member and a hitch receiver of a vehicle. A plow blade having two retention members secures to the two uprights to complete a snow plow weighing approximately 250 pounds.
A snow plow for mounting to a trailer hitch receiver is disclosed in Lemieux et al. (U.S. Pub. No. 2009/0119954). A main frame is inserted into a trailer hitch receiver and a plow blade assembly is attached to the main frame. The plow blade assembly includes electrical and hydraulic circuits, a motor and a solenoid. A wireless receiver controller receives signals from a handheld wireless transmitter and operates the hydraulic system to raise or lower the plow blade assembly.
The prior art snow plows described above still remain generally inconvenient for the average person unfamiliar with snow plowing. Some snow plows are difficult to attach or remove, requiring professional permanent installation or requiring them to remain attached throughout the entire season of snow fall. Even if the plow is removable, they are heavy and unmanageable by one person. Further, the prior art snow plows tend to be complicated, having many parts and complex mechanical, electrical or hydraulic functions. Furthermore, lengthy and expensive maintenance is required if the snow plows malfunction or break.
Therefore, a need in the art exists for a lightweight, compact and easy to use snow plow that a single individual can attach and remove from an existing vehicle hitch.